DooM: The Union Aerospace Corporation preview
by DukeNukem1
Summary: This is a three (and a half) chapter preview of my novel. Sorry but the doom word art does not work ATM. :(


DooM: the Union Aerospace Corporation  
  
-By Sean Wright  
  
Contents  
  
--------------  
  
Authors note  
  
Prologue  
  
Chapter 1: The Year 2136  
  
Chapter 2: The U.A.C.  
  
Chapter 3: The edge of death  
  
Chapter 4: Cold Steel  
  
Chapter 5: Reunion of heros  
  
Authors note  
  
--------------  
  
Doom: the Union Aerospace Corporation is a full-length novel I'm writing that is based on the upcoming third installment of the video game series: Doom. Please note that this excerpt contains use of Harsh language, violence, blood and gore. Due to Copyright limitations and book value it would be very hard to release the final version as a novel, however you can expect to see this as a free Internet release Unless Todd Holendshead likes it enough to allow puplication but I dont think he visits fanfiction.  
  
Prologue  
  
--------------  
  
-New Georgia, April 3rd 2136, 13:52 Zulu time  
  
The Chinook Mk IV helicopters flew in low over the Atlantic Ocean as they approached the waters of New Georgia; the attack was about to begin. The water rippled and swayed as the telltale flaps of their twin blades could be heard from miles away. Enemy scout ships could be seen floating ominously on the water below; the helicopters had made their presence known.  
  
"Red leader do you read," The anxious helicopter pilot shouted into his headset. "This is Tango 4 to Red leader, do you copy?" "What's our ETA?"  
  
"Three minutes Tango 4" The lead pilot replied. "Copy that." He said with a sigh of relief. "Ya' hear that boys; you've got three minutes...hurry up!"  
  
Meanwhile the soldiers in the back of the helicopter were busy strapping on their gear, anxious for some action. Staff Sergeant Timothy Razor was leaning against the inner fuselage of the helicopter, moving his hand down the smooth chrome surface; he could smell the brand new metal straight out of the factory. The compartment had a dark room like red glow from the light by the door accented by the light brown of cigar smoke. Razor was getting annoyed; patience was clearly not one of his virtues.  
  
"Why is it that whenever there is an uprising, we are the ones who have to clean it up?" Razor muttered to his commander. In a low commanding voice the commander responded slowly: "Its because we're the best, you know that." Razor looked up and glared at his commander. He was a tall, buff, paragon of manliness with short cut brownish-black hair and the muscle of a Greek god. He had a stern, commanding voice and his very presence demanded attention. The commander tightened the leather straps of his ammo backpack and took a long drag from his cigar.  
  
"You know Doom, smokings' bad for you." Razor said. Since the commander never revealed his real name, his colleagues affectionately call him "Doom."  
  
"I know" The commander replied as he breathed the smoke out slowly and dropped the cigar on the floor. He put it out with his boot. The other soldiers looked on with respect in their expressions. A voice called softly from the back of the compartment; "I have a question sir." "What is it new guy?" the commander asked private Barns. "Why do they call you 'Doom'?" "Here it comes." Corporal Tex said sarcastically. "Tell him the story Razor" Razor took a deep breath as he turned around and put his back against the wall. "Anyone he comes up against is doomed to die; the commander rarely takes prisoners." Razor explained. "That's why we call him Doom."  
  
Tex was getting impatient; three minutes had surely passed by now. "Is it time yet?" Tex yelled to the pilot. The pilot Squinted hard to see through the dense rain; the New Georgia City skyline was now in his view. "GET READY!" The pilot cried. "I can see the city up ahead!" The soldiers clipped on their fast ropes. As the helicopter leveled off, the red light in the compartment turned green and the door flew wide open. "This is the Earth Defense Force we are entering the city," The red leader shouted from the loud speakers attached to the helicopters. As the Chinooks poured their men into the streets, gunfire burst out from all directions. Doom's muscles bulged as he lifted his chain gun ready to fire; the rebels that took over the city would not last the night.  
  
As the last of the soldiers hit the ground Doom broke the radio silence. "Insertion Successful command, no medevac needed." "Proceed to your next objective immediately, command out." Doom's platoon quickly took cover behind the wall of a nearby building. "Everyone is accounted for Doom." Razor shouted. "Good" doom quickly replied "I hope that all of you remember the briefing," Doom yelled over the machine gun and artillery fire. "But since there is a new guy in our platoon I am going to recap. Our primary objective is to secure the main power pylon, which terrorists identifying themselves as 'the Fascists Against Religious Tyranny' are threatening to use as a giant nuclear bomb. The entire country is likely to go up in the largest disaster known to man kind." "What do the terrorists want?" Razor asked "religious freedom," Doom replied, "there are very few who still have such a right under the umbrella of the U.N." "So they're going to blow up an entire country?!" Tex exclaimed in shock. "Yep." said Doom. "Jesus" Barns remarked.  
  
Doom took out his Universal GPS display unit and pressed a few buttons. The unit beeped and then displayed a large holographic image on the ground; it was a map of New Georgia City from their current position. Enemy positions were displayed in yellow from given military intel, while objectives were displayed in red. "Ok here's what we need to do," Doom explained to his squad. "The current sit rep prevents us from going directly to the main power pylon because two gun emplacements are blocking our way. Other than that we have little resistance."   
  
The platoon was at this point in a very bad position because they were at the fork of two roads leading to the power pylon and a residential area populated with innocent civilians lay between these roads. "Ok squad split up," Doom ordered "Razor you will take team 2 while I will head team 1." "Tex, you go with Razor, and keep an eye on Barns we don't want the new guy to die first if it comes to that." Doom looked to the rest of his team. "The rest of you: Jones, Hudson and Hicks are with me, Sarge, you guard the rear of both teams." "Yes Sir!" the platoon shouted. "Team 1 will take the more dangerous road to the left while team 2, you take the right." Doom Ordered. "I don't want any screw ups; you get me Hicks?....Hicks?" Hicks was busy hunched on the wall counting sheep. "Somebody wake up Hicks!" Tex gave Hicks a quick knock on the head. "Wake up, what the hell is the matter with you?" Tex growled. "Lets go!" "Move out!" Doom Shouted. The two teams split up and ran in a zigzag pattern between buildings; their boots splashed in the large puddles of water as they ran.  
  
Team 2 got halfway up the street when the gun platform on their side finally pinned them down behind a building. "Tex set up some cover fire while I go inside the building." Razor ordered. "I'll lob a few grenades their way from the roof. Barns you stay put" "You got it." Tex replied. "Covering fire!" Shouted Tex, he spun around to the other side of the building, took quick aim with his Plasma gun and then unleashed several bluish-green Balls of molten death at the rebels on the platform. Razor quickly ran inside the building and headed for the stairs. Before any of the rebels could get on their feet to retaliate, Barns fired his High-Velocity pistol at one of them. The depleted uranium projectile flew at lightning speed as the linear accelerator in his pistol went off turning the terrorist's head into a meat doughnut. Tex and Barns quickly hugged the wall of the building again to avoid the machine gun and plasma gunfire. "Nice Shot" Tex applauded.  
  
Things weren't going as well for team 1 however, as the platform on their side had better firepower in the form of semi-automatic rocket launchers. "These guys have some serious firepower for such a small faction." Hicks pointed out as a rocket blew another chunk out of the building they were hiding behind. "No wonder they had no problem taking the city." "We need to find a flaw in their defenses fast; we are running out of cover." Doom told his men. "Sir, look." Keel shouted. "Next to the main gun on the platform." Doom took out his scope and pointed it around the corner so he could see. "I see it" Doom replied. A canister of explosives was placed near the main gun. "Fire in the hole!" Doom Shouted. He then fired on the canister with his chain gun quickly. The Platform exploded and the terrorists burst into flames killing all of them. "Thank God that's over." Tex said with a tone of relief.  
  
It didn't take long for Razor to reach the roof of the building. He quickly ran to the edge of the roof and took cover behind the small ledge. He was about four stories up, which was just high enough to lob a few grenades the required distance to destroy the platform. Razor took out his radio. "Tex, I need some more cover fire." razor said. "Roger that!" Tex replied. Tex and Barns laid down some quick machine gun fire. Razor removed two grenades from his ammo pack; he twisted the tops and pulled them apart arming them. The grenades started to beep. Razor waited a few seconds for the beeps to get closer together and when the beeps almost sounded like a solid sound Razor chucked them on to the platform. Before the terrorists could react the grenades exploded sending red-hot shrapnel everywhere. Those that were still alive were quickly turned into Swiss cheese by machine gun fire from Tex and barns. No civilians were hurt.  
  
"Checkpoint A secure Gamma 2," Doom relayed in his radio, "Razor, do you copy?" "Copy that Gamma 1" Razor replied "Checkpoint B secure." "Good Work men," Applauded Doom "Everyone rendezvous at Check point B immediately, move out."  
  
Team one hotfooted it to the second gun platform where Razor and his team were waiting. They were covered in a coat of dirt from the building rubble, which turned to mud from the drenching rain. "You look terrible sir" Barns expressed with concern. "They had rocket launchers" Doom complained "all this dirt came from the building we were using for cover. None-the-less we didn't get hurt." "That's good news." Said Tex. Doom could hear something from his radio; he pulled it out. "New Georgia City power pylon secure mission accomplished Alpha 1 out." "That was fast" Barns replied, "We didn't even get in on the action." Tex grumbled.  
  
"Tango 4 this is central Command, Tango 4 do you copy?" Doom turned his radio to the correct channel. "This is Tango 4 we read you command." General Crow was on a direct line with the Tango 4 squad. "Intelligence reports indicate that the terror group involved in this incident was helped by local factions in New Georgia." The General explained. "What does that have to do with us sir?" Doom inquired. "One of these local factions has occupied a residential area in your exact location. Your orders are to eliminate them." Doom and the rest of his squad looked at the residential area behind them. They saw people hiding in their homes. "These are innocent civilians sir; we will not stand for this." Doom defiantly replied. "Are you telling me that you are about to disobey a direct order?" The general asked dryly. "I will not condone this general, under any circumstances." The general paused for a moment then took a deep breath "In that case I'm afraid I have no choice but to place you and your squad under arrest." "So be it." Doom replied. "He is going to pay for this" Razor said angrily "If they WERE helping the terrorists then they would be fighting with them".  
  
The Chinook Mk IV helicopters were once again carrying troops, this time back to the aircraft carrier. One thing had changed this time though. One aircraft was carrying its troops in handcuffs. "Tango 4 to aircraft carrier Prodious do you copy?" The pilot radioed in. "We are on final approach." "Roger that Tango 4," A control tower operative acknowledged. "You are clear to land." The helicopter leveled off and landed softly on the massive ships deck. General Nathan Crow walked toward the aircraft with several MPs closely behind. The platoon stepped off the helicopter compartment floor. "Lock them in the brig tonight men," General crow ordered "I will deal with them tomorrow." "Sir yes sir" The MPs replied, following their orders. Doom, Razor, Tex, and Sarge glared angrily at the general with a piercing gaze. Hicks and Barns just stared at the deck with their heads down. The MPs escorted them to the brig.  
  
The large cargo elevator went slowly downward heading for the brig on Deck E. The clanking of metal from the elevator chains reverberated against the inner hull of the ship. "I can't believe you guys would be arrested." One of the MPs. told the incarcerated squad. "Why didn't you take a stand against the general?" Doom asked the MP. "You know what he is doing is wrong." "Orders are orders sir," replied the MP dryly "You of all people should know that." Doom clenched his fist in anger at his side, the veins in his arm bulged as it trembled. "Now arriving at Deck E" The elevator COM announced. The elevator stopped abruptly with one last clank. The door gave out a short beep then opened. As MPs escorted the men to their cells the brig guard placed his hand on the scanner and the red laser bars blocking the holding cells turned off. The men were placed in their cells and the lasers were turned on again. The MPs went back to the elevator and the guard shut the door to the holding cellblock; the door made a buzzing sound as it locked.  
  
"This isn't right," barns complained. "We did the right thing, those people had nothing to do with the terrorists." "The general didn't know that." Razor explained. "But we told him they were innocent." "I know, but you know how high ranking officers can get cocky." Razor said. "They think because of their vast experience that they know everything." Doom added, "They don't care what the grunts think; the officers just expect them to follow orders blindly." "General Crow is still going to pay for this." Tex angrily replied. "We will be brought to him tomorrow," Doom said "that's when we will take care of him. In the meantime it's getting late," The clock on the wall said 22:46. "I am going to turn in for the night." "Good night sir." Barns said. "Good night" Doom replied. "Oh and one more thing barns." "Yes sir?" barns asked. "We treat each other like brothers in my squad; there is no need to call me sir unless I'm giving an order."  
  
The next morning at about 07:00 the guard came in and turned off the lasers; the squad was then escorted to the Generals office. The guard shut and locked the general's door behind him as he left. The general sat down at his desk, took a breath and began to speak quietly but firmly. "Do you know what branch of government this is soldier?" Doom gave no answer. "This is the military!" The general stated. "And in the military what are we trained to do?" He paused for a moment. "Follow orders!" He shouted. "Why did you disobey a direct order and make your squad do it as well?" "For your information sir I did not force them." Doom quickly answered. "They did it on their own willingly." "Enough!" The General snapped. "You and your squad did not follow orders and you will be dealt with accordingly." "Those people were innocent civilians!" Doom yelled as he slammed his handcuffed fists on the table, his eyes fixed on the general's. "They were harboring terrorists!" The general yelled back. Doom stood back up and slowly put his hands behind his back. Unbeknownst to the general he had procured some paperclips from his desk and was now passing them to his squad discreetly so that they could pick their handcuffs. "We had a good look at them sir and they did no such thing." Doom slowly replied. "If they did anything for the fascists they were forced to." The general sighed and then spoke again. "None-the-less, I am still going to court marshal you when we get to port. No soldier under my command disobeys his orders under any circumstances." Doom looked at his men to the left and the right, giving them the signal, then he looked back at the general and smiled a grim smile. "I'm sorry to hear you say that general." The detained squad lifted up their hands and showed the general their now off handcuffs; the general gasped. "GET HIM!" Doom Shouted. Then they beat him into a bloody pulp.   
  
Hearing the commotion, the MPs rushed into the room only to find the general beaten within an inch of his life. Tex was holding up the general by his jacket with his free hand rased and clenched into a fist. "Its not what it looks like!" He said. They quickly lifted their machine guns and detained the squad once again. As the general groned Tex looked back and forth betwen the MP's and the general. He gave a quick nervious laugh and then abruptly dropped the general on the floor. The platoon was escorted to the brig and the general taken to the medical deck. He would live but not without a body cast. Doom and his squad were to be placed before a military tribunal when the ship reached its destination: the military city of NORAD 2.  
  
Chapter 1: The year 2136  
  
--------------  
  
The year is 2136; one government, once known as the United Nations, runs the entire world with help from numerous global corporations. Disease has been virtually eradicated thanks to advanced medical techniques and over a century of research after the third Great War in 2032. Chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons had long since been banned, however many independent military branches still have their own private stockpiles. One such military branch is the Earth Defense Force, a wholly owned property of the Union Aerospace Corporation. This was the branch that Doom and his squad served in; their service would end today.  
  
As the aircraft carrier arrived at the docking station several large robotic arms flung out from the side of the carrier and connected with the dock. The helmsmen watched his console closely. When docking was complete his console displayed a message: "Transponder signal confirmed...welcome to NORAD 2." The Helmsmen and the Captain inserted their keys into the console and turned them simultaneously. The massive ship powered by a nuclear fusion reactor shut down.  
  
Meanwhile in the holding cell of deck E the MPs assigned to guard Doom and his squad were busy inspecting their machine guns. To pass the time, Razor watched and broke down the design of the weapon:   
  
"The PC132ME assault weapon, designed after the old tried and true RPC90 from the late 20th century. Forged from an extremely lightweight titanium-plastic polymer the weapon weighs only six pounds unloaded. The weapon is shiny and chrome-white in color and features a sleek comfortable design. The military edition of the PC132 has a bull pup design and is capable of carrying sixty rounds of both standard rapid-fire bullets and High velocity .50 caliber slugs. The weapon comes with a small LCD display which labels the current ammo supply in the clip." "You sure know your weapons Razor." One of the MPs pointed out. "Indeed I do."  
  
Just then the cargo elevator could be heard coming down in the next room with its now familiar clank. "Perfect Timing." Tex mumbled. The captain of the guard opened the door to the holding cells and walked in. "Sounds like its time for you to go." The guard said as he turned off the lasers. The squad stood up from their seats and proceeded to the cargo elevator.  
  
As Doom and his squad stepped outside and into the light they covered their eyes and squinted at the bright light of the radiant sky, it was a beautiful day. Razor took a sharp noticeable sniff. "Ahh can you smell that?" He said proudly. "That's the sweet smell of victory." "Amen comrade" Doom applauded. "Even though we're going to get court marshaled it was worth it." Barns said. "Relax Barns," Doom said. "We are not going to be court marshaled. We are the best soldiers of Earth's armies; we will just have to wait and see what happens." "You're right I guess." Barns said with a tone of relief. The captain of the ship walked out to them and began to speak in a tone that expressed annoyance. "Lets go, hurry up, the tribunal can not be kept waiting." The squad walked down one of the docks ramps and climbed into the transport that was waiting for them.  
  
The pilot revved up the engine and took off like a rocket. "How long until we get there?" Doom asked the pilot. "About thirty minutes." The large Arial transport flew high above the vast city below. Barns stared in awe at the buildings below; he had never been to such a city before. Buildings towered three hundred stories tall, some of which were so high that you couldn't even see the top. Even though the city is extremely urban for this time it is still extremely beautiful. The buildings were accented by the orange, yellow hue of the rising sun. Their eyes had now become used to the light again. The platoon remained silent during the entire trip.  
  
"Alright everyone we're here." The pilot stated. Razor looked out the window and saw another large skyscraper brandishing the logo of the Union Aerospace Corporation. It also had a small Earth Defense Force logo below it. "Well," Doom said with a sigh. "Looks like its time to face the music." The transport landed in a small docking station near the office level of the building. The soldiers exited the transport and proceeded to the office of military discipline where the trial was to take place.  
  
In the courtroom, the MPs opened the large wooden doors and the soldiers were seated. The MPs then shut the door and stood guard inside the courtroom. Across from the benches about ten feet away there sat three judges in their officers uniforms. On the left and the right two men sat examining the platoon with their eyes. In the center sat a woman, she was tall, and fit with shiny blonde hair, She was also the highest ranking of the two officers. The woman didn't seem like she belonged in the military, but this thought was quickly eradicated when she spoke in a loud, stern voice.  
  
"We have taken a look at the files and video footage reporting the events of your most recent mission." She said with a straight face. "All I have to ask you is what in the hell were you thinking. Not only did you disobey a direct order from one of our most experienced generals, you also decided to beat him within an inch of his life." She ran the audio logs and video footage from the battle and from the general's office on the aircraft carrier on the courtroom evidence screen. "But those people were innocent; we did the right thing!" Doom said defending himself and his squad. "Nevertheless," she replied, "you still went too far. Not following the order may have been the right thing to do but beating him senseless was not such a good idea. I'm afraid that this tribunal has no choice but to sentence you." The other two judges concurred.  
  
"A court marshal then?" Doom inquired. "No." the woman said. "Given your squad's excellent record we cannot do such a thing. Therefore I sentence you to be transferred to the U.A.C. research base on the planet Mars. Consider yourselves hired government mercenaries now." "What will we do there ma'am?" Tex asked. "Mostly guard duty." The judge said with an evil smirk. "You are to be transferred to the research base tomorrow at 03:00 sharp. Dismissed." The judge brought the gavel down hard and the squad was escorted to their temporary holding cells for the night.  
  
03:00 came like a lightning bolt to the present; Doom and his squad constituting Earth's greatest warriors would soon be on their way to Mars, home of the Union Aerospace Corporation. They had no idea of the terrible things that were in store for them there.  
  
Chapter 2: The U.A.C.  
  
--------------  
  
Doom slowly took one last swig of his coffee as he headed for the hangar; the rest of his squad was already there. He walked down the long, well-lit hallway with confidence in his gate; his steps echoed down the hallway as his boots hit the tile floor. He gave passers-by obligatory nods on his way to the hanger elevator. Before he got on the elevator he threw his disposable coffee cup in a near by trash receptacle. When the man arrived at the cargo elevator he nodded at the MP who opened the door. Doom stepped on to the elevator and pulled the lever; the elevator went down slowly.  
  
As the elevator went down, Doom looked out at the large hangar with his hands on the railing. The hangar was a huge enclosed space with a large door overlooking the vast NORAD2 skyline. The control room could be seen hanging near the top of the back wall. Best of all was the amazing sight of the largest starship the commander had ever seen; his men were near the back loading dock of the starship waiting for him. The elevator hit the floor and the railing lowered so that the commander could get off. He sent the elevator back up and took a small cart nearby to the ship.  
  
The cart went down the hanger floor at a steady pace as it approached the ship. The hangar was so large that it took almost five minutes to get there. The commander's men eagerly saluted him as he approached. "Glad you could make it on time Doom," Sarge said. "Figured you'd be late." "I'm never late," the commander joked. "If I am it's your fault." Everyone laughed except Sarge. "Well what are you waiting for? Lets go!" The commander ordered. "Yes sir." His men shouted. They all went aboard the ship. Before the commander got on the ship he asked the soldier near by why the platoon was to travel on such a large ship. To that the soldier responded: "You are on the monthly supply ship to the U.A.C. headquarters on mars." The commander then walked aboard with the last of the supplies; there was everything from weapons to very large, very expensive lab equipment. The commander simply shrugged at the sight and headed for the passenger deck; it was going to be a long trip. The platoon quickly took their seats as the control room engineers gave the go ahead for the ship to take off. With a mighty roar the ship's rocket boosters fired, sending the ship out of the hangar and hurling it into space. The rockets quickly separated from the ship once Earth's gravity was out of reach and the ships plasma drives activated sending the ship toward mars at tremendous speed.  
  
"What a rush that was." Barns gasped. He had never gone space traveling before. "Yeah, its something you never get used to." The commander complained. "Don't worry hoss," Tex said. "We will be on mars soon and you can get right to guard duty and cleaning urinals." Everyone laughed and nodded their heads. "That's a funny accent you've got there Tex." Barns pointed out. "Where are you from anyway?" Everyone slowly turned to look at Barns and raised their eyebrows; an awkward silence filled the room. "What, Was it something I said?" Barns asked. "Look Barns, you haven't been with the squad that long," The Commander stated. "I think its time you learned who we are, and I think its time the squad learned a little bit more about myself." The platoon sat on the edge of their seats. "My real name is John Sinbolik." The commander stated. "I was responsible for the deaths of over three hundred million people during the Spiker Insurrection; Sarge and I were the only survivors. Fearing assassination attempts, the government transferred me to the E.D.F. and placed my name under classification." "So that was you huh?" Barns said. "The Spiker Insurrection was required reading at the academy. So how does it feel to be part of such massive death?" "There is nothing you can do about the past." John responded. "John eh?" Tex said. "I much prefer Doom." "Me too Tex, me too." John joked. "Tell us about yourself Barns." Razor said. "How did you manage to land yourself in a squad like this right out of the academy?" "Well," Barns replied. "I'm an excellent shot, a very excellent shot." "I can vouch for that." Tex certified.  
  
For several hours the soldiers talked amongst themselves, learning about each other's past and personality. They were no longer just soldiers together, they were brothers.  
  
--Rootlog new entry.c  
  
Login/JSinbloik Doom  
  
Rank/Master Sergeant  
  
Currentstatus/ branchtransfer  
  
Snumberpassword/ UCEDF00001337   
  
Recordlogaudio 9268: Date 04/10/2136 08:32:16Hours  
  
Recording.....  
  
"Master Sergeant, John Sinbolik audio log number 9628. We have been underway for nearly six days now and will be arriving at our destination sometime tonight. Most of the time the days here have been quite boring: we have been walking around the large cargo ship looking at the supplies. We have seen very complex laboratory machinery as well as standard supplies like food, building material, air filtering systems, tools, spare parts, and Diet Red Soda vending machines. One thing disturbs me about this however; also included in the cargo is a large amount of weaponry. What do they need that for?"  
  
"Razor beat me playing Chess again, that man is a machine. I mean he beat me in four moves! How is that possible? Other than that not much is new. Hicks is coping Zs as usual, Tex and Sarge are playing with their weapons while Jones and Hudson talk regularly with the captain of the ship. I doubt that going from one of the top squads in the military to become security guards for some far-off base is a good career move, but at least we still get full benefits."  
  
--Logoutendrecord  
  
"Logs, they get more annoying every day." John complained.   
  
"Attention this is the captain," the intercom sounded. "We will be entering Martian air space in five minutes. Repeat, five minutes. Prepare for entry." The commander quickly headed for the passenger deck and strapped himself in. "You ready men?" the commander asked. "Yes sir!" they replied. "It's going to be a rough ride." They looked out the window and saw the rusted red of Mars and it's two moons Phobos and Dimos; research outposts could be seen on both of the moons and a complex of biblical proportions could be seen on the planet below. The massive ship came down upon the base like a lightning bolt, and the dome surrounding the warehouse of the complex opened. The ship entered the enclosure, leveled off and the hovered for a few seconds before landing; the ship hit the ground with a great thud. The seats on the passenger deck jolted.  
  
The commander and his squad were already headed toward the cargo bay when the giant door to the enclosure slid shut. A horrendous blast of wind propelled itself into the enclosed vacuum created by the airtight dome causing uneven pressure between the new outside air and the air in the cargo ship. Inside the cargo ship a red light turned on in the cargo bay as the door was preparing to open. An alarm sounded warning those inside to prepare for the sudden pressure change. The door opened slowly and a gale of wind blasted the men inside sending sand towards them like a rain of tiny bullets. As they stepped outside another blast of wind hit them. "Ack...I know we need oxygen, but if all of the air being pumped in is shoving sand down our throats how are we supposed to breath it?" Razor complained; he could feel the sand gritting his teeth. As the atmosphere inside the dome was restored the wind calmed down; the men could finally breathe easily.  
  
The large doors leading to the warehouse opened up allowing cargo trucks to drive out and into the ship's cargo deck. One of these trucks came up to the men standing outside. The commander came up to the truck and spoke to the driver. "Where are we supposed to go? Do you know?" "Yeah, you're supposed to come with me." The driver said. "Hop in." The platoon packed themselves into the back of the truck.  
  
As the vehicle drove through the warehouse Razor spent his time chatting with the driver. "This place is one hell of an impressive setup you've got here." He looked at the awesome sight of large assembly systems and shipping lines; conveyor belts and hanging transport lines were everywhere. "You have no idea." The driver responded. "The entire U.A.C. complex covers almost half the planet, and that's not including the outposts on Phobos and Dimos." "What do you people do here?" Razor asked. "Tell me more about this place." "We do all kinds of things here. What we do ranges from advanced technology research to weapons development, to environmental terraforming research, to various atomic research and top secret black operations." The driver explained. "I have seen some contraband equipment on the cargo ship we were on; I thought there were no exceptions to such things." razor said with bewilderment. "What do you want?!? This is Mars; when you are millions of miles away from any form of any form of human government you can avoid a lot of red tape." the driver trumpeted "Are there any civilians here?" "Civilians, scientists, government officials, investors, and hired military security personnel like yourself." the driver replied "Don't rub it in." Razor grumbled.  
  
The truck had reached a tramcar station in the middle of the warehouse. "This is where you get off everyone. The train station will take you to the barracks for the night. You will begin working tomorrow morning." The truck driver said as a tram came into the station. The men got out of the truck two at a time and walked onto the tram; the door shut and the tram started moving. The troops were glad that they sat down when they did because the tram went into a tunnel and started to move at breakneck speed. Once out of the tunnel the tram came to a quick stop. "Now arriving at barracks 3" The tram voice stated. The soldiers walked off of the tram and were escorted to their quarters where they would rest for the night. Unbeknownst to them, they were going to need it.  
  
Chapter 3: The Edge of Death  
  
--------------  
  
John awoke around 90:00 hours quite surprised to find that no one had waken him up earlier. There was a man standing next to his bed. "I am here to give you and your squad the grand tour of this area before you receive your first assignment." the man said. "Thanks for the extra rest," John said. "I needed it badly." "Get ready. I'll be waiting in the briefing room." The man replied.  
  
The men got ready quickly and reported to the briefing room; the man was busy flipping his pen between his fingers. He turned and faced them "You ready to go?" He said "Yes" The commander replied. "Good, let's go." The man said in a hurry. The men walked around the area with him. "We are now in the primary tram docking station and administration area in grid 4." The man explained. "We are heading for the registration office to get your gear in order." "Gear?" John replied. "Yes: Identification papers, Clothing, Standard armor, sidearm and machine gun, security passes, PDAs and BioID processing." "You people keep this place tighter than an industrial vice." Sarge pointed out. "You have no idea how many rival corporations have tried to take this place down." The man said stiffly. "In fact the U.A.C. isn't all that far removed from a military base."  
  
The administration building lie just a few yards ahead of them; it wasn't a very large building compared to the other structures around them. "This is it." the man said. They entered the front hallway of the building and headed for the security desk; two security cameras were eyeing them as they went by. The wall on the right was fitted with a large X-ray panel for security. The man escorting the new security guards knocked on the glass door leading to the security desk. "Open the door Jan, It's me, Farva with the new guards." He called to the female guard sitting at the desk. "How's it going Charles? Hang on while I open the door." The door buzzed and then opened.  
  
As the men walked up to the desk they noticed the large U.A.C. logo on the linoleum tile floor; It had the letters U.A.C. inside a large triangle with the words "Union Aerospace Corporation Leading the to a better future" written in a circle around it. "What do we have here?" Jan said as she was eyeing the commander and Razor. She turned in her chair to look at her computer for a moment but instead she caught Barns staring at her. He smiled and flashed his eyebrows at her with disturbing intent; she returned the favor with a look of pure disgust. She was a very attractive woman with shiny blonde hair; she had her ponytail tucked down the back of her uniform due to the U.A.C. hair length regulations. She typed away with barns still gazing at her, which was very distracting. In order to set Barns straight Sarge gave him a swift kick in the shin. Unfortunately for Barns, Sarge kicked him too hard causing him to fall forward, slamming his face on the desk. Farva, who saw this, burst into laughter for a moment. Barns stood up adjusting his jaw "That wasn't funny." he grumbled.  
  
With newfound peace Jan finished typing and turned to the commander placing several electronic touch pads with pens on the desk. "Everyone needs to fill out the information on these pads for registration." She stated, "You heard the woman, Take your pads." the commander ordered. They filled out the information required and returned it to Jan. She put the pads away and stood up. "Come with me." She said. "Farva, you can take over." "Why do I always have to do your job?" Farva complained. "Shut it Farva." She replied with a sinister smile.  
  
The men followed her to the equipment room where she opened a large vault. "Come inside." She said. The men stepped inside and looked in the direction where Jan was standing. On the table next to her lay several PDAs "All Union Aerospace Corporation personnel are required to have one of these PDAs in their possession." she explained "this is the device you will use for storing personal security codes, audio and video logs, map information, as well as any information given to you by other personnel." "Can we play games on it?" Barns asked. "Why does everyone ask that question?" She complained with a sigh. "Yes you can; as long as you do your job." She muttered about how stupid he was under her breath.   
  
"Here you go." She said finally as she handed them each one PDA. The devices were smooth and black with a holographic screen for viewing of large objects such as a map layout. "Now that you have your PDAs its time to get the rest of your stuff at the security station." She said. "Follow me." The men followed her onto an elevator, which then proceeded to go downward. The elevator music made their ears hurt with disgust for a few seconds before it stopped at the local security station. They got out of the elevator and proceeded to the armory. Jan placed her hand on the security lock, which scanned her hand; the door opened. "Okay everyone." She said. "Here is what you need: your security clothing, one flashlight, a radio, one 9mm standard sidearm with two clips, one linear accelerator pistol with clip, your standard PC132ME with two clips and your standard security armor." "That's a lot of gear for a security guard." Razor exclaimed as he gathered the gear, everything hat the U.A.C. emblem inscribed on it. "This is a government facility that works on top secret programs you know." She explained. "We have to make sure that we are safe from attack at all times."  
  
"Well guys," She said "This is it, now that you have all of your stuff its time to separate you and send you to your posts. I'm sorry that you have to be separated but we have to do this as a precaution to keep our information and research safe." "Well that sucks but at least we can see each other during leave, Right?" Tex said. "Indeed." Jan replied.  
  
As Jan returned to her desk Farva escorted the men to the tram station and placed them on the correct tram. "Okay," Farva said, "John, you are assigned to the Delta Complex, Mr. Razor, you are assigned to biochemical processing in grid nine..." Farva went down the list as he told the men where they would go. They took a few minutes to say goodbye to each other then the trams bolted off in different directions.  
  
--RootlogPDA new entry.c  
  
Login/RazorTim  
  
Rank/Staff Sergeant  
  
Currentstatus U.A.C.M.S.E.C.  
  
Snumberpassword UCSEC44714008   
  
Recordlogaudiofstentrynew 0001: Date 04/11/2136 14:38:56hours  
  
Recording.....  
  
"Staff Sergeant, Timothy Razor, new log, first entry. This is my first entry in my PDA hence the new log. I've been on guard duty for the last two hours now. It's not all that bad but it's only a matter of time before it becomes annoying. I'm on guard at the green house dome in my area because it is one of the easiest places for an attack team to break into. The garden is quite large: Metal scaffolding stands about fifty feet above the ground, large plants and trees rise up to the massive fifteen story dome. At least I have a way to avoid the claustrophobia here.  
  
I think that something big must be going on here today and I'm worried about it. Most of the science personnel I've seen today have been acting a little bit on edge lately."  
  
--Logoutendrecord.  
  
Razor put away his PDA and continued to walk around the green house.  
  
Meanwhile at the Delta Complex, the two head scientists at the U.A.C. Leonid Chucov and Ivan Udanski were busy over looking the test of their invention. While exploring Teleportation technology they stumbled upon a way to create an interdimensional portal, this was their first test. "Instruments are fully calibrated Leo." Ivan said as he scanned the console and monitors in front of him. "Good." Leonid replied "Initiate the test sequence" Leonid shouted into the microphone. A scientist next to the portal pressed a few buttons on his console and the portal opened. An automated robot went up the ramp and than proceeded into the portal. The portal machine was a large metal device with several metal tubes driven into it. The two head scientists were behind a reinforced bunker hanging above the portal room. "The probe is reading Extremely high concentrations of heat" The scientist in the portal room said. Suddenly the Robot flew out of the portal smashed into several pieces and melting. Large transparent skulls flew out of the portal; going right through the scientist's body like ghosts. His console exploded sending the poor SOB flying back.  
  
Razor heard a large explosion followed by gunfire. "Assistance required strange monsters are attacking us need help...." The radio fell silent with static but gunfire could still be heard. Suddenly the door leading to the greenhouse opened and a security guard ran out; he was caught by a human like monster with brownish-gray skin. The creature saw Razor standing there and ran at him with lightning speed. Razor took the PC132ME machine gun strapped to his back just as quickly and spun it around. Grabbing the handle he held down the trigger with a death grip. The gun unleashed a hail of bullets on the creature, which leaped into the air and hit Razor in the head. He fell back loosening his grip on the gun causing it to drop off of the scaffold and onto the green house floor.  
  
Razor got up slowly grunting, his nose was bleeding. As he straightened himself out Razor took out a large syringe from his satchel; it had a long needle and a ball reservoir at the top filled with a red liquid. He jammed it into his arm and the liquid instantly entered his bloodstream. He cracked his neck and the superficial wounds in his head disappeared. He looked down at his machine gun with a frown; he couldn't get down there. He turned to the creature, which was lying on the scaffold smoking and riddled with holes. Razor turned it on it's back; the monster was a hideous creature with several eyes on the forehead, other than that it looked mostly human. "What the hell?" Razor took out his pistol and put a bullet in its head then walked to the airlock door to get inside; there was work to be done.  
  
CHAPTER 4: Cold Steel  
  
--------------  
  
Razor breathed deep through his nose and slowly sucked in the cold, dank air of the eastern security wing in grid nine. As he breathed out he noticed the steam of his breath as it entered the room; the climate control system must have malfunctioned. He stepped inside the doorway between light and dark, cracked his neck and took out his flashlight; the air lock door closed behind him with a pressurized hiss. The lobby of the security office was all around him, dark and foreboding, the lights dangling on their frayed wires were shooting sparks in all directions. The sparks suddenly stopped, a few clicking sounds came from the ceiling and the red emergency lights turned on with a quick hum.  
  
As he looked around; flashlight up and pistol at the ready he noticed something vary strange about the scene. At the time of the incident there were twelve people in the lobby but he could only count four. One of the officers that was stationed at the lobby desk had his entrails torn out and he had a death grip on his pistol. Upon further inspection Razor could see that several large trails of blood ran up the ceiling, through the floor and out the doorway into the main complex. Bullet holes and scorch marks riddled the walls, some of which were still red hot from the heat and predominantly metal walls. Whatever happened to these missing people, Razor did not want to know. "Poor bastards." he thought.  
  
Suddenly one of the few bodies left started to move and a groaning, gargling voice came from it. "A survivor!" Razor thought as he quickly ran offer to the person and knelt down for closer inspection, the survivor was a woman. "It...was terrible." she said coughing. "Are you alright?" Razor asked. "Yeah...I'll live." She responded. "Tim...Is that you?" She said as his face shown in the dim red light. "Yes it's me." He said. It took him a moment to realize it but Razor recognized this woman. "Tammy?!?" He inquired in shock. "Yeah, it's me alright." She said. "You look like shit." he said, "How do you think I feel?" Tammy said. She tried to laugh a little bit but she coughed instead. "Don't worry I'll get you out of here soon." Razor assured her. "Here, use my last Stim, that should keep you alive until I can find better medical aid." He said as he took another syringe out of his satchel  
  
Razor looked around for any sort of medical kit or FA station but could find none in the security station. He also checked for weapons and armor. Almost nothing could be found even on the few dead bodies that were left. The entire security station yielded only one clip for his pistol and a flack vest. He gave the vest to the woman as he already had his standard polymer vest. If he were to help Tammy further he would have to go outside the station himself. "Sit tight Tam." Razor told her "Looks like I'm going out in the main hall for a medical station." "Be careful." she said. "You have a gun right?" "I have a pistol but my machine gun is toast, I'll have to find another." "Great." Tammy said sarcastically. "From what I can hear over the radio band there's a whole damn army of these things, all different kinds of creatures too." "Shit" Razor replied. "Well put." she said.  
  
Razor lifted his pistol with the left hand and entered the security override code into the doors leading into the main hall. During an attack, most doors automatically prime a security lock. As the doors slid open Razor shielded his eyes from the heavy Florissant light in the hall; the power was only out in the security station. He noticed that the temperature and air were still the same in the hall as they were in the local security station, cold and dank. Razor checked the three-dimensional map on his PDA and then turned his head toward Tammy. "I'll be right back." He said. "Don't move, I don't want you dyeing on me." The pressurized doors closed as Razor walked out of the security station and into the main hall of Grid 9.  
  
As the map on Razor's PDA loaded up he had a sudden thought: "If there were still people on the radio band then perhaps some of my old squad members are still alive." Unfortunately for him his, PDA did not have any communications software loaded yet and his radio had broken during the encounter with the monster in the green house; he would have to collect the data from Tammy when he got back with some medical supplies. According to his PDA the nearest medical station was about two hundred yards from the security station. Although the hall was a wide open, well lit space Razor chose to proceed slowly toward the medical station as more of those things were likely to appear, after all, this area holds the scientists' quarters and offices. If these monsters were after bodies this would be a good place to find them.  
  
Several torn up and gibed corpses lined the hallway from one end to the other. Normally Razor would have expected more though because of how busy this area is supposed to be on any other day, but today was the day of the "Big experiment" for the scientists on staff. Almost everyone went off to his or her stations around the complex; Razor wondered why one event would require almost the ENTIRE science team to be working simultaneously. Most research complexes would have at most, about sixty percent of the staff on duty at one time. At this point razor didn't have time to worry about such crap; he had to get some medical supplies and chances are that it didn't mater anyway where the rest of the people were, they were probably dead.  
  
Interestingly enough, Razor reached the medical station without incident. He went in started turning the place upside-down for medical supplies. He was amazed to find this place almost entirely intact. Other than a few broken windows and some torn up chairs in the waiting room the area was fine. After scouring the supply room and examination tables for supplies, Razor found a box of Stim packs and a medical kit. At last he could bring Tammy back to health without fear.  
  
Just as Razor stood up to leave he heard a loud bang from inside the floor cabinet next to him. He quickly stepped back and aimed his pistol at the door. It opened slowly and a scientist peeked his head out. "Whew," Razor sighed as he lowered his pistol. "T thought you were one of those things." The scientist climbed to his feet and slowly walked to the examination table next to the floor cabinet, he had a pistol in his right hand. There was a body on the table covered by a sheet. The scientist looked at it for a moment and then removed the sheet. Razor jumped back, the body on the table looked just like the monster he brought down in the green house. The scientist spoke slowly:   
  
"When they attacked, one of those things leapt at me high in the air, reacting on impulse I drew my gun and shot it in the head. It landed on this table here and I quickly hid inside the compartment. After the sounds of screaming and shooting were gone I came out to examine the monster. When I heard you coming I thought it might be another one of them so I covered the monster with this sheet and hid."   
  
Razor took a good look at the man; he seemed to be okay. He glanced at the man's gun. "How is it that you came by a gun?" Razor asked the man "Everyone at this facility is issued a gun, even the custodians. Most of us just don't carry them around." the scientist replied sternly "damn its like you people are EXPECTING something" razor exclaimed. "At least we can make the best of it by collecting ammunition from the housing area." he said. "But you would need a security code for each room to do that and judging by the security card on your uniform you don't have the authority for a master security code." "Damn it." Razor complained.   
  
"Is there anyone else alive that you know of?" Razor asked. "Not that I know of," the scientist answered. "And I don't know about you but I want to get the hell out of here alive myself; the tram station is not far ahead" "We'll have to mace a quick stop back at the security station before we go." Razor said. 


End file.
